“Sweetheart, she knew. Your mom knew you loved her.”

“You think so?”

“Yes. You have to work on accepting that you were being a kid. You didn’t mean those things. You have to forgive yourself for being human.”

Emma looked down the shoreline.

The man in the floral shirt was far-off now, looking through his binoculars. Only now Emma could’ve sworn they were definitely aimed at her.

Unease shivered through her.

Then she turned in the opposite direction and saw two large kites curling and coiling high in the sky.

What’s he looking at?

After the beach they went to a restaurant. It was dog-friendly and they sat on the patio, where Tug was permitted, “and welcome,” their server said, to sit beside them.

Once they’d ordered, Emma got a text from Glenda Heywood, her principal, updating her on Carson, telling her that he would be seeing a psychiatrist and his family was with him.

“Everything okay?” Ben asked Emma as their nachos arrived.

“Yes, my student is getting the help he needs.”

“Good,” Ben said.

“So Dad,” Kayla said. “What do you think? Can we all go to the cabin sometime? We’ve only been up a couple times with Emma. You’d like to go back, wouldn’t you, Emma?”

“It’s beautiful there,” Emma said, “but it’s up to your dad.”

Ben thought while chewing on a chip. “I’d like to get my next book settled first. Then we’ll see. Okay?”

Ben looked to Emma but her attention had shifted from the table to a white car parked some distance down the street near the end of the block. She was certain the man who’d gotten into it was the floral shirt man from the beach. But he didn’t drive off. He just sat behind the wheel.

Is he looking at the restaurant patio?

Is he looking at us?

Ben followed Emma’s gaze. Then turned back to her.

“What is it?”

“Sorry. I thought I saw someone from the beach.”

“Something wrong?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

She waved off concerns, reached for a nacho, smiled as she chewed but shot a secret glance back to the man’s car.

At home that evening Emma was still bothered by the floral shirt man, fearing he could be connected to the note and the mystery woman watching her at school.

Still, she wasn’t certain that the guy near the restaurant was the man she’d seen at the beach.

So what if it was? It would only be a coincidence. Or would it?

Her worry pulled her back to the threatening note.

No one knew about it.

And no one will ever know about it.

Still, it gnawed at her.

I’ve got to find out who’s behind all of it and put a stop to this. I’ll protect Ben and Kayla no matter what it takes.